This study of the sacred art of Tibet is the result of eight years of meticulous brush drawing, and a lifetime spent researching and reflecting upon the inner and often hidden meanings and origins encapsulated in this most complex of iconographical traditions. Several thousand individual drawings arranged as a series of 169 plates illustrate the many variations in style and individual expression of these ritual objects. The text interweaves the origins, meanings and functions of these symbols, derived from India, Tibet and China, into a comprehensive tapesty within a Buddhist conceptual framework. This book will become a classic not only for all those interested in Tibetan religious culture, but for artists, designers and others who look eastwards in a search for meaning.

Robert Beer, a British artist, has studied and practised Tibetan thangka painting for the last 30 years. One of the first Westerners to become actively involved in this art form, he initially studied for a period of years in India and Nepal with several of the finest Tibetan artists living at the time. Over the last 18 years he has concentrated on producing an extensive series of iconographical brush drawings depicting the symbols, lineage holders and major deities which occur in the vast spectrum of Tibetan art. This book on symbols and motifs is the first part of this series to be published.


Encyclopedia of Tibetan Symbols and Motifs; Robert Beer; Shambhala Publications; 363 pages; $65